False Allegations : Wrongful Accusations of Rape

Men falsely accused of rape destroy reputations. False allegations occur at an alarming rate. There is no justice for the false accusers.
Rape has several meanings, the lesser known being to seize, take or carry by force; or an act of violation, abuse or plunder. Having that clarification, it can be stated that when men are falsely accused of rape, they become a victim of rape. Their reputation and life as they once knew it has been forcibly seized and emotionally, they have been abused and violated.

False Accusations Exist

In a study that span nine years, sociologist Eugene J. Kanin’s findings were that in the United States, 41% of rape allegations are false. Kanin discovered that most of the false accusers were motivated by a need for an alibi or seeking revenge. Kanin was once popular and highly praised by the feminist movement for his groundbreaking research on male sexual aggression. His studies on false rape accusations have received very little interest.

These findings are not exceptional. The U.S. Air Force studied over five hundred rape accusations in 1985. More than 130 of the accusers admitted, either just before they took a lie detector test or after they had failed it, that no rape occurred. A more in depth investigation by independent reviewers established that 60% of the original rape allegations were a sham.

Linda Fairstein is the head of the New York County District Attorney's Sex Crimes Unit. She states there are a concerning 4,000 reports of rape each year in Manhattan. Of these, about 2,000 did not happen.

In Canada there is little or no justice for falsely accused men. In a small town north of Toronto a woman gave York Region Police a blood stained pair of underwear stating that her ex-husband sexually assaulted their daughter. DNA evidence proved that the woman cut herself and put her blood on the garment. She was fined $25 for public mischief.

Craig Silverman, a former Colorado prosecutor known for his zealous prosecution of rapists during his career, says that false rape accusations occur with "scary frequency.”

The crime of making a false allegation is not exclusive to women. On April 24, 2007 TimesOnline reported that Aftab Ahmed, 44 of Bradford, England was cleared of a false allegation. A teenage girl accused the cab driver of rape in January 2006. Mr Ahmed stated, “The accusations have destroyed my family. It has impacted on myself, my wife and my children. To be accused of rape is the most serious crime in my religion of Islam.” Aftab Ahmed lost everything as a result. The adolescent girl was sentenced to only four months detention.

Women Are Victims Too
Men are not the only victims of women who make false allegations. Women who are the real victims of rape, are further victimized by those who make false accusations. Words and actions by a false accuser rob the real-life victims of rape of badly needed services. These women abuse police, prosecutors and victim group resources, taking time, money and resources away from those who truly need and deserve help.

The Need for Justice

Although legislative amendment is needed, it cannot immediately stop the frequency of false allegations of rape. Society needs strict laws to aid in the education process that no one has the right to make a false allegation.

Rape is an appalling crime. False accusations of rape and the lack of accountability should be just as an intolerable of a crime as physical rape itself.